Internal carotid occlusion associated with migraine syndrome: a case study of a 22-year-old female.

Migraine and migraine-like headaches are sometimes associated with acquired types of carotid artery disease. We examined a 22-year-old female suffering from periodic migraine, sometimes with "atypical" features. Color Flow Duplex Sonography revealed an occlusion of the right internal carotid artery (ICA) and a possible severe stenosis of the cervical segment of the left ICA. Digital Subtraction Angiography combined with Angio-Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Echographic Imaging suggested the possibility of a fibromuscular dysplasia involving both ICAs. It is suggested that some atypical features of headache could represent symptoms of a carotid pathology.